"To this day, Europeans rarely put ice in their drinks, but Americans do."
What? Where did this come from? I live in Europe and can hardly imagine a cocktail without an ice. Well yes, nobody is going to put a good scotch "on rocks" (at least nobody who knows the basics of whiskey), but that's a different story.
I've lived in many places around Europe, and I've lived among Americans from all over the US, and I definitely noticed a difference. Perhaps you're right about cocktails, but in most cases American used ice where the Europeans didn't (a glass of coke being a prime example). They would even did this in winter, which always seemed funny to 'us' Europeans.
What? Where did this come from? I live in Europe and can hardly imagine a cocktail without an ice. Well yes, nobody is going to put a good scotch "on rocks" (at least nobody who knows the basics of whiskey), but that's a different story.